Crew Cuts: PSV, MLS file brief in appeal of judge's order

Andrew Erickson The Columbus Dispatch @AEricksonCD

Monday

Jun 11, 2018 at 8:04 PMJun 11, 2018 at 8:04 PM

Attorneys for Precourt Sports Ventures and Major League Soccer on Friday filed a brief in their appeal of a May Franklin County Court of Common Pleas order in Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and City Attorney Zach Klein’s lawsuit against the league and Crew operating group.

The 43-page brief reiterates PSV and MLS’ belief that Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey M. Brown was in error when he partially granted the city’s motion to toll the case, delaying it 90 days, and when he mandated PSV and MLS comply with “judicially-created processes” like coming to an agreement with the city and state regarding potential terms for a non-disclosure agreement and information to be provided to prospective Crew buyers.

Such processes, PSV and MLS argue, were not called for and are not included in Ohio Revised Code 9.67, the basis for the city and state’s lawsuit filed in March. The law, enacted in 1996 and commonly referred to as the Art Modell Law, states an owner whose team plays the majority of its home games in a tax-supported facility and who receives public benefit must either receive permission or provide six months’ notice and locals the opportunity to purchase the team before moving.

PSV, which announced the possibility of relocation to Austin, Texas after the 2018 season last October, and MLS restated their belief that the Modell Law does not apply to PSV because MLS owns the team. They also argued that the 90-day pause granted by the court amounts to an injunction making the case appealable and listed several reasons, including the dormant Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, why they believe the Modell Law is unconstitutional.

Brown said in his May order the court would not answer questions of constitutionality until after the 90-day window.

DeWine and Klein filed last month a motion to dismiss the PSV and MLS appeal, arguing Brown’s order is neither final nor appealable.

Since the court’s decision on the motion to dismiss the appeal has not yet been made, the city and state have not yet filed their reply brief.

“We would hope the Court rules on our motion to dismiss the appeal very soon,” an Ohio Attorney General’s Office spokesman said in a statement to The Dispatch on Monday.

The spokesman said the city and state have a reply brief deadline of June 25 in the event the judge does not decide on the motion to dismiss beforehand.

Council meeting

Austin City Council is expected to discuss Precourt Sports Ventures’ 189-page proposal for a stadium at McKalla Place in north Austin at its Tuesday work session. The Crew operating group released the proposal 10 days ago to kick off a month it hopes will result in a letter of intent or memorandum of understanding for a stadium on the 24-acre, city-owned site.

In advance of that Tuesday meeting, Austin City Council District 7 representative Leslie Pool posted to the Austin City Council Message Board a series of questions related to PSV’s proposal and a city report on the McKalla Place site issued the same day.

Pool indicated she is hoping to find out more about the opportunity costs related to accepting a PSV proposal for a soccer stadium at McKalla Place, infrastructure costs related to the possible project, potential costs taken on by the city in the future and risk of the team leaving Austin prior to the end of its lease.

“The Columbus Crew has a 25-year lease on their current stadium in Ohio, which opened in 1999. Under PSV’s proposal, they would leave Columbus roughly 85 percent of the way through the term of their lease,” Pool wrote, “Please describe the risks and (if possible) estimate any associated costs under a scenario in which the City of Austin accepts PSV’s current proposal and the Columbus Crew decide to move to another city roughly 85 percent of the way through their lease with the City of Austin.”

Pool, who criticized the PSV proposal and expressed her concerns regarding PSV to The Dispatch last week, wrote on the message board that she believes the city needs “more robust information” regarding costs and benefits of the project.

“As the Mayor has noted, economic impacts are not the only impacts we will be looking at as a Council,” Pool wrote. “We will also be looking at any cultural or other intangible benefits that having a soccer stadium at this location might provide, and that is an important conversation. But even these intangible benefits have a cost, and we need to know what that cost is before we can decide whether we can afford it.”

Film study

After dominating much of the first half of a 1-1 tie against the New York Red Bulls on Saturday, Crew SC stumbled out of the locker room, committing a few turnovers and losing control for a little more than 15 minutes as the Red Bulls tied the game 1-1 on an Alex Muyl header goal.

“It was tough,” coach Gregg Berhalter said of his film review of those 15 minutes. “It was a tough period of the game. A couple things happened: Red Bull went primarily man versus man and then we lacked movement.

“We addressed it today and the important thing is when you’re in that situation you need to get the ball into their half and you need to play in their half more and we just had no movement to get behind them and to run into space.”

It took New York’s goal, Berhalter said, for the Crew to “wake up and start playing.”

A go-ahead goal didn’t come late, however, and the Crew finished out its third tie in as many games.

Lucky number

A visit from the New York Red Bulls shows a clear contrast in numbers. While Crew SC’s highest jersey number is No. 31 Connor Maloney, New York has seven players with numbers greater than 60.

Why the low numbers for the Crew? Tradition, perhaps.

“I think every club has their own philosophy and every player has their own ideas and stuff like that, but we like to stick to traditional soccer numbers,” Berhalter said. “I wouldn’t say that’s set in stone, though, but that that’s what we’ve been tending to do so far.”

Stoppage time

Jonathan Mensah played 14 minutes to close out Saturday’s game after missing two consecutive games with a thigh injury. Asked if having Mensah on the bench to start the game was a way to give the Ghanaian center back three additional days to recover in time for the Atlanta game, Berhalter said, “With his timeline from his injury, starting the game Saturday put him at risk.” Mensah no longer appears on the Crew injury report. … A spokesman for the Triple-A Round Rock Express said Sunday PSV has not yet reached out to the team regarding the potential use of Dell Diamond as a temporary stadium site. Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium, Texas’ football stadium, and Myers Stadium, the school’s track and women’s soccer field, are other options in the event PSV completes a permanent stadium agreement.

aerickson@dispatch.com

@AEricksonCD

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